Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1887-03-15
burrows FAMOUS STEAMBOAT.
mr. perr,,s Account of It's Trial Trip
p,xvn the Hudson.

|
Do,vn the Hudson.
Dr william Perry the oldest gradr
ate Of Harvard College, who died .
Exeter . few days ago, was the sol
survivor of the passengers who were OF
Robert Fulton's little steamboat whel
(, she made her famous trial trip aowi
Tho Hudson in 1907. He became I
passenger on tho boat through acci
dent. He had left Schenectady wner'
he had been at school, on ms was ho'pe
for the HOLIDAYS and after tedious
staoe.rjde had reached Albany. Al
,bis time railroads had not been intro,
ducea IN this country and in their stead
;ourneys were made by tho old-fashion-
I'd staee-coach, and, where naviga-
tion was possible, by river boats us
they were called. which made trips
regularly from point to po'nt' ouc''
boats made trips up from New ! ork 70
Albany and back, and by this way Or.
Perry was TO travel. These packets
were clumsy affairs and depended en-
t;relv mon The wind The journey
was long and the passengers often iate
at their points of destination. Arriving
At Albany Young Perry found that no
boat would leave for several DAYS rs
the vessel. which was billed 10 leave
that day, had not yet arrived from her
previous trip. BY good chance he hap
pened 10 overhear some men taking
about a new invention called a steam
hoat which was to make a trial trip to
New York the next day.
He decided 10 be one OF her passen-
gers. aud his story of the first trip OF
the first steamboat in America WIN al
ways be remembered BY those who nave
heard it. The doctor used TO declare
that the name of the boat was not, MS
has been almost universally stated. the
Clermont IL was Katherine OF Cler-
mont. named in honor of Fulton $ wife,
Katherine Livingston, OF Clermont,
New York. There was lady OF Con-
nectcut under young Pcrry's charge,
on her way to New York City, and she
agreed to 60 by the steamer. 1t took
her so long. however, to get ready tnat
morning - 1t was Aug. 10, 1907 - that
when they reached the wharf the boat
was steaming of. With an accommo-
dalton that hasn't served to establish a
precedent for these later years, the oil
GERS stopped the vessel and sent back a
small boat to take the two travellers on
board.
AT first everything went smoothly,
but in the afternoon the steamboat ran
aground, and it was necessary to wait
for high tide before she could float oil.
After that the boat got into more seri-
Gus trouble, but Mr.. Perry was not
then on board. At Kingston he had
decided 10 stop-over and visit his broth
err. Tho Katherine of Clermont con-
tinued her course, but had travelled
only few miles farther when her boiler
burst and she had to be lad up for re-
pairs for several days. Soon after
wards she began regular trips between
New York and Albany.
As TO the appearance of the first
steamer DIR. Perry used to say that it
was a rudely built craft about 1875 feet
long and 20 feet wide, with side paddle
wheels and sheet-iron boiler. She
could make about six miles an hour.
The machinery Of the boat was clumsy
and made such no SO rs to Brighten
the cattle which were grazing along
the banks OF the river. AT some places
the people who gathered at the banks
to see the craft were also frightened
and fed when they beheld the thing
gliding along with no visible power to
make it move. II is interesting to
note, in connection with the story of
DR.. Perry, that great Britain did not re-
ceive her first practicable steamboat
until 1912, five wears after the trial
trip of Fulton's first boat. 1t was not
until 1919 that the efficiency of the pull
ing craft for transportation between
the two countries was made manifest.
Then the little Savannah steamed
across the ocean, making the trip in
twenty-six days. Now the trip can be
made in six days, -Hdnchester Union.